


A Hero's Sorrow

by twilitfalchion



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:35:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24823198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twilitfalchion/pseuds/twilitfalchion
Summary: As he goes to face his destiny, Link thinks back on the events preceding the Calamity and those following his awakening from the Shrine of Resurrection.
Kudos: 1





	A Hero's Sorrow

The rain continued to pour down across the plains of Hyrule as a solitary figure astride his mount traversed the verdant terrain. Clad in a bright cyan tunic and plain khaki trousers, the only article of clothing keeping his head from getting soaked by the showers was a thin cloth hood with an embroidered design that reflected its Hylian origins. Most who had met this boy (as his appearance undoubtedly reflected his youth) knew him to be a rather friendly character, if a bit distant, as though he were seeking to fulfill a purpose far greater than himself.

It is in this moment that such determination shows itself on his face—in the tight line his lips form, the wrinkle of his brow, and the coldness found within his cerulean eyes. He is not swayed by the adversaries or obstacles he faces. All he knows— _all he can feel_ —is the irrepressible drive to push forward that he has had burning in his mind and heart since he awoke from his century-long slumber. But it is not just this feeling moving the boy toward his destiny; it is a voice. _Her voice_. The voice that repeats in his waking moments and his restless sleep: “ _Link. You are the light—our light—that must shine upon Hyrule once again. Now, go…_ ”

From the moment he awakened in the Sheikah-designed resurrection chamber, the young Hylian could sense the burden that had been placed on him before he had even entered the world. Of course, as he had been told later by the protector of Korok Forest, it was the will of the Goddess Hylia that he carry the Blade of Evil’s Bane and prepare to eradicate the looming Calamity from the land of Hyrule. However, this did not stop a steady flow of questions from entering his mind throughout his travels:

“ _Why would the Goddess let Ganon destroy Her land?_ ”

“ _If Hylia is such a benevolent, omnipotent being, how could she allow the fate of the world to be placed in the hands of two adolescents?_ ”

“ _Why did I fail in my duty?_ ”

“ _Why am I forced to remember the tragedy of what happened so long ago?_ ”

“ _Why did my friends have to die?_ ”

Forcing himself to shrug off the questions that had swirled through his head like the spiraling landmasses found in the Akkala region of Hyrule, the young hero presses forward, instead choosing to recall the events that had occurred in the past several months since departing from the Great Plateau.

In the months past, Link had completed myriad trials and endured countless battles, with his initial goal being to free from Ganon’s corruption the Sheikah-crafted Divine Beasts that belonged to the respective races of Hyrule—the aquatic Zora, the sky-bound Rito, the heat-dwelling Gorons, and the exclusively female, desert-inhabiting Gerudo.

Indeed, the first of his victories against the corrupted machinations of Calamity Ganon took place in the Divine Beast Vah Ruta. Although this was only one of four malice-contaminated abominations he would come to face, Link’s time in Zora’s Domain had affected him the most strongly, as he had learned of the Zora Princess Mipha’s affection for him, regrettably unaware of whether he had reciprocated her love or if he had known of it at all. It was upon discovering this and realizing what had transpired so many years ago that Link began to be plagued by guilt for allowing the Calamity to afflict Hyrule and steal the lives of his friends. Likewise, he would come to continuously curse his failings in the past and his inability to remember what he so desperately wanted— _no, needed_ —to recall in the present.

But the reluctant hero’s sorrow would only be amplified as he liberated each Divine Beast from Ganon’s malice. It was during the hours of twilight after one such triumph that Link found his dreams filled with visions of the mutilated bodies of the former Champions of Hyrule surrounded by legions of Ganon’s monsters and corrupted Guardian machines, all taunting him in unison as punishment for not being strong enough to stop the Calamity. Night after night, Link would find himself thrown awake by these imaginations, desperately gasping for breath while frantically reaching for the nearest weapon to defend himself from the army of whatever malice-infused creatures that happened to plague his mind while sleeping.

However, it was for moments like the present that Link had learned to set aside his internal warring and personal musings to be the hero that the unforgiving Goddess had predestined him to be. Using his bow to let fly an ancient arrow at the Guardian machine defending the entrance to Hyrule Castle, Link braces himself for the confrontation he had hoped would spell the end of his serving as the hero of Hyrule. Although he was uncertain of whether the Goddess Hylia cared for the affairs of her people, or if she even existed, Link made a decision before entering the demon’s chamber that he would offer a hopeful, silent prayer to her in thanks should she allow him to prevail against the powerful darkness of Calamity Ganon and free the world from the threat of his devastation.


End file.
